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April242010

Jennifer McCreight, a Purdue University student in the United States is asking women around the world to show a little cleavage or a little leg on Monday as a humorous test to disprove an Iranian cleric’s theory that immodest dress has the power to make the earth shake.

The story began when Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi, Tehran's acting Friday prayer leader, said: “Many women who do not dress modestly… lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, which (consequently) increases earthquakes.”

Jen McCreight who describes herself as a liberal, geeky, nerdy, scientific, perverted atheist feminist trapped in Indiana, wrote in her blog:

I have a modest proposal. Sedighi claims that not dressing modestly causes earthquakes. If so, we should be able to test this claim scientifically. You all remember the homeopathy overdose? Time for a Boobquake. On Monday, April 26th, I will wear the most cleavage-showing shirt I own. Yes, the one usually reserved for a night on the town. I encourage other female skeptics to join me and embrace the supposed supernatural power of their breasts. Or short shorts, if that's your preferred form of immodesty. With the power of our scandalous bodies combined, we should surely produce an earthquake. If not, I'm sure Sedighi can come up with a rational explanation for why the ground didn't rumble. And if we really get through to him, maybe it'll be one involving plate tectonics.

The Boobquake event on Facebook already has 123,680 confirmed supporters, including many men. The photo above is from the Facebook page.

And here is a video message on Boobquake:

Iranians themselves have also launched creative campaigns against censorship and repression in the past. One of the most recent was the Men in hijab campaign to support Majid Tavakoli, a jailed leading student activist. It seems the Iranian story has become world wide sensation this time.